


A Couple Beers

by deanlovescasposts



Category: Supernatural
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, Bi!Dean, Dad!Dean, DeanCas - Freeform, Doctor!Dean, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, I hope, M/M, Maybe some angst, Sexual Tension, Slow Burn, Top!Cas, a lot of sexual tension, bottom!Dean, but you'll like it, first fic, i havent decided yet, teacher!Cas
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-19
Updated: 2017-07-04
Packaged: 2018-11-16 03:55:40
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,653
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11245806
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deanlovescasposts/pseuds/deanlovescasposts
Summary: Castiel just wants to go get a drink after a long and terrible day but he lands himself in a bar fight. A stranger with stunning green eyes helps him out but Cas thinks he will never see this gorgeous guy again. Then the stranger's son ends up in the same class Castiel is teaching.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys this is my first fic and I really hope you like it. If you don't like it please comment what I should fix and improve. Chapter two should be up in the next couple days. Thank you so much :)

All Castiel wanted was a drink.

He had a long day and just wanted to sit at a bar and have a couple beers. His days were getting increasingly stressful and exhausting and he needed a break.

He should have known that would be too much to ask for with his luck.

He was just starting on his second beer when he was all of a sudden soaked in alcohol. Some asshole had just spilled a drink on him.

"God damn it!" As soon as he felt the drink he jumped up.

"Shit sorry." The guy was laughing through his half-ass apology. Normally Castiel wouldn't make it such a big deal but the guy barely apologized and he had had a bad day.

"Are you kidding me? Fuck you." Castiel had raised his voice but he wasn't full on yelling yet. The guy, who must have been at least 6'4", turned around with a more intimidating look on his face.

"What did you just say to me?" Castiel's anger turned to fear because he knew the guy must have a pretty bad temper and being that wasted couldn't help.

"I said fuck you." There was no going back now.

"Boy you better walk away." The guy was now in Castiel's face.

"Or else what? Are you really going to start a bar fight over th-"

Castiel was on the ground in a second.

"Yeah I am!" The guy was now on top of Castiel throwing punch after punch. The guy was really angry.

He was surrounded by people yelling and trying to pull the guy off of him but he was relentless. In between hits Castiel managed to grab a beer bottle that had rolled beside his head and smashed the end on the ground, cutting his hand open in the process. Castiel raised his arm up ready to swing the bottle. When the guy saw the sharp end of the bottle he got off of Castiel and ran out of the bar, leaving Castiel with a blackened eye, a busted lip, and a hand with a long gash, pouring out blood. People were crowding around him trying to help him up. He just wanted to go home and sleep.

One man pushed his way in front of everyone to help Castiel.

"Hey buddy, let's go get you some help okay?"

Castiel nodded his head hesitantly. He led Castiel to his car, helped him inside, then went around to the other side and got in himself. He started the car and then started driving.

"I'm Dean. Nice to meet you." He looked at Castiel with incredibly green eyes and had a huge smile on his face. Castiel thought the cheery introduction was a little weird considering the blood steadily flowing out of his hand.

"Uh hi I'm Castiel. Where are we going?" It had just hit him that he had gotten into some stranger's car without even asking his name. Everything had just happened so fast.

"To the hospital, you need to get that hand stitched up. It'll take about 20 minutes to get there so just sit tight and try to relax." Dean sounded calm and like he knew exactly what to do.

"Thank you but you don’t have to take me to the hospital. I can call a cab or drive myself." Castiel felt awkward sitting in his car looking like a complete mess but Dean seem unaffected. He had even turned the radio on, he thought it might be Led Zepplin. He was glad someone cared enough to take him to the hospital.

"Hey it's no big deal Cas," Cas? They have known each other five minutes and Castiel had already been given a nickname. "Really and I'd rather take you myself than you think you're fine and not go at all." Dean didn't sound fake like he was just saying it to make him feel better. He actually sounded sincere, like he really meant it.

"Thank you. I really appreciate it."

"No problem." A grin was pointed towards Castiel. "So what happened? I mean you don't really look like the bar brawl type." Castiel sighed.

As Castiel explained what happened Dean was listening intently.

"Wait wait wait. So this prick just ran away like a little bitch?" Dean's grip on the steering wheel tightened.

"Huh. I guess he did." That realization left Castiel with a soft but proud smile.

When they pulled up to the hospital Castiel thanked Dean for the ride, expecting him to leave.

"No I'm coming with you." That really took Castiel by surprise. Dean saw the confused look on Castiel's face and answered the question he hadn't gotten the chance to ask yet. "It's okay I was going in anyways." This left Castiel with even more questions but he didn't bother asking. He was too tired. Castiel looked at his watch. It was almost midnight.

They walked in and up to a long counter together and before Castiel had a chance to speak Dean was talking to the lady sitting behind the counter.

“Hey Donna.”

“Oh hey there Dean. I didn’t know you were coming in tonight.” The lady had a stunning smile and a happy attitude.

“Yeah my shift doesn’t start for another couple hours but I got this guy who needs his hand stitched up and figured I might as well come in now.” Dean explained briefly, said bye to the woman, then led Castiel to an empty bed in the emergency room. He closed the cheap, blue curtain behind him and put on a pair of gloves and gestured for Castiel to sit down.

"So you're a doctor here?" Castiel asked even though the answer was pretty obvious by now.

“Yeah, well I’m an intern so I’m not a full on doctor yet but I can do a couple quick stitches no problem. Now you don’t have to wait two hours to get some stitches that’ll take ten minutes and I can get some practice too.” Why was Dean being so nice to him? He had met him only half an hour ago.

"Wow that is very kind of you." Castiel realized he hadn't gotten a good look at Dean until he was watching dean carefully stitch him up. He had the prettiest green eyes he’d ever seen. He also noticed when Dean looked up and smiled he got these little wrinkles right on the outside corners of his eyes. They were the best kind of wrinkles you could ever imagine. He also had great lips. They curved perfectly and he could just imagine what they felt li-

No. Castiel couldn't be thinking like this. He knew he would probably never see this man again and even if he did he knew he didn’t have a shot. He probably had a girlfriend or something.

Him and Dean talked and laughed about dumb stuff for the next ten minutes until Dean was finished stitching Castiel up.

“Alright I’m all done. It will probably hurt for a little while but if it starts to hurt real bad take a couple ibuprofen and you should be good.” Dean’s voice seemed genuinely concerned about Castiel but all signs of worry in his face were masked with that smile.

“Thank you for everything Dean I really, really appreciate it.” Castiel gave him his very best smile.

“Do you need a ride home? I can drive you if you need, it’s not a big deal.” That offer made Castiel feel safe for some odd reason.

“Thank you but no, I texted my brother while you were working and he’s waiting outside but thanks for the offer.” Dean looked a little disappointed at Castiel’s response but he quickly changed his expression.

“Oh okay well stay out of bar fights from now on, got it?” Dean had a goofy grin on his face.

“Alright you got it doc. I’ll uh see you around.” See you around? _See you around?_ That was the best Castiel could think of?

“Yeah. See you around.” Dean shot Castiel one final smile then Castiel left.

He contemplated asking the gorgeous doctor for his number, in a totally platonic manner Castiel thought, as he was walking out of the hospital but he threw that idea to the back of his head as he stepped into his brother, Gabriel’s, car.

“Wow Cassie, didn’t know you had a bar fight in you underneath all that nerd.” Gabe was always picking on Castiel but he knew he loved him deep, deep down.

“Yeah whatever just take me home please.” Castiel was definitely not in the mood.

“Damn what’s with the tude?” Gabe looked at him like he had two heads. He still hadn’t started driving.

“I’ve just had a very bad day please, Gabe, just take me home.”

Gabe threw his hands up in surrender and started driving. The car ride was silent.

Gabe finally pulled up outside of Castiel’s apartment building and before they could exchange goodbyes Castiel got out of the car, waved, then went inside the building.

Once he was in his room he slid into his bed, desperately trying to fall asleep. He just wanted today to be over.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy!

Castiel woke up in a lot of pain. He did what Dean suggested and took some medicine and waited for it to work its magic. It was almost 6:30 and he wanted to go back to sleep because it was Sunday but he knew he wouldn’t be able to with the pain he was feeling so he just decided to make himself a cup of coffee. 

Once he sat down to drink his black coffee he picked up his lesson plans. The school he taught kindergarten at was starting the year on Tuesday so he had to finish up his plan for the year before then. He had procrastinated a lot. He had the entire summer to complete it and here he was, two days before the first day and he had barely done half of it. Tomorrow was open house and he was excited to meet the parents and show them how the year would flow.

Castiel’s life had been a bit of a trainwreck lately. His baby sister, Anna, died back in January and ever since then he had been kinda off to say the least. He had gotten much better than before but he still didn’t feel right. He felt like something was missing.

When she first died Castiel was truly broken. It took him weeks to even go back to work. He was better but every once in awhile he would have a bad day and would only want his little sister to talk to but she wasn’t there and he had to deal with it. Yesterday was one of those days and his need to get wasted t forget about her landed him in a bar fight. The same bar fight that he met the green eyed babe, Dean.

Castiel started thinking about him again. He didn’t even know Dean’s last name but yet he was completely mesmerized by the image of him stitching him up that he played back over and over in his mind. He knew he wouldn’t see Dean again probably ever but he still hoped. He tried to rationalize his mind and tell himself to just accept the fact that his little “crush” would never happen but he couldn't. 

Castiel snapped out of his thoughts and got back to the schedule. This was a new year. He could have a fresh start with new students and new parents. It would be great and he was very excited to go back to work.

Castiel loved his job. He got to spend his days teaching small and innocent kids things that were simple and easy to adults but were brand new and fun to these little humans. Sure he had his bad days but they were always made better when he thought about things his students had told him in the past. The kids were one of the only things that kept him going after Anna’s death.

He had been teaching for five or six years now but this was the first year he would have a student teacher along with him. He was bittersweet about it. He has happy to have the extra set of hands to help around the classroom but he was also a little upset because he loved having a connection with each student and didn’t want the kids to like his student teacher better than him. He was also nervous because he had never taught anyone over the age of six years old and now he was about to mentor someone in their early twenties. That was terrifying to him but he figured maybe it would be a fun challenge.  
Castiel worked on his plan all day and even stayed up late to perfect it. When he looked at the clock and saw it was nearly 2:00 in the morning. He finally put his papers away and anxiously fell asleep, giddy for the next day.

**********

Castiel made sure he got up extra early even though he didn’t have to be at school until 11:00. He showered and put on his favorite shirt. He’s worn it to every single open house and he’s keeping the tradition alive. He grabbed all his papers he needed and left, practically skipping out of excitement.

Parents wouldn’t be allowed in until 11:30 but Castiel got there at 10:30. He had come in a couple times in the past month to set his classroom up but he still had a few last minute touches to make. He put out the juice boxes and cookies he bought on the way there then a very perky redhead came in.

“Omg you must be Castiel Novak! I’m Charlie Bradbury and I’m your student teacher.” The girl seemed very enthusiastic. He generally disliked overly-happy people but he automatically liked her and knew they would be fast friends.

“Yes I’m Castiel it’s nice to meet you and I’m very excited to be teaching you this year.” Castiel held out his hand to shake hers but she pulled him in for a hug.

“I have a feeling we’ll be good friends.” She let go of him finally. “Oh and can I call you Cas? Castiel just sounds so formal and uptight.” It sent chills down his spine because that was the same thing Dean had called him. He shook that feeling away and considered this nickname. He never thought his name was intimidating or formal but now he realized it kinda was.

“Um sure. I think you’re right, Castiel is uptight.” Maybe he would start introducing himself as Cas he thought.

They chatted about the year ahead of them and Cas ate a few cookies. He had forgotten to eat breakfast in all of his excitement this morning. He really liked Charlie and could tell she wasn’t fake being nice to him or kissing up. She was very genuine.

 

The parents started filing in a little bit later and he showed them around the room and talked to each of the kids. They seemed a little nervous and shy at first but after Cas cracked a few jokes that any six year old would find hilarious they calmed down. There would only be seventeen kids in his class and he was grateful to have a smaller, more intimate class in comparison to the thirty two students he had last year.

The room was filled and there were parents being guided by the children exploring the room like Cas had told them to do freely. Charlie was talking to some of the parents and the kids. She was excellent at dealing with them and it seemed very natural to her. That’s when Cas heard a familiar voice behind him

“Hey Ben get back here you need to meet the guy before you just go wandering around his room.” Cas had just heard that voice for the first time the other night but he recognized it as soon as he heard it. 

Cas swung around to meet Dean’s eyes, which widened along with his smile when he realized who he was looking at.  
“Cas? No freakin way!” They both stood there for a second, shocked and neither of them knew what to say.

“Dean uh what are you doing here?” Cas finally broke the silence.

“My son, Ben, is in this class. What are you doing here? Do you have a kid in here too?” Cas couldn’t believe it. The man he desperately wanted to know but thought he didn’t have a chance in hell of ever seeing again was standing right in front of him. He would be teaching his son for the next nine months.

“Actually no I’m teaching this class.” Dean dramatically dropped his jaw.

“Get out of town. What a small world. How’s the hand doing?” Cas didn’t know what he was talking about but then he remembered the gash that ran down the length of his hand.

“Oh it’s fine. It hurt yesterday but today it feels much better.” Cas then bent down to be at eye level with the little boy holding Dean’s hand. “Hey there I’m Mr. Novak what’s your name?” The boy looked up at his father and Dean gave him a nod of approval.

“I’m Ben Winchester. This is my dad Dean. I didn't want to come and I told him it would be boring. He still made me come.” Ben shot his dad an angry look but it was adorable and Cas had to laugh a little.

“I’m sorry you thought this would be boring but maybe a cookie and some new toys can change your mind. How does that sound?” Ben’s eyes lit up as soon as he said cookie. He ran away quickly without a word and Cas stood up to look back at Dean.

“You know I’m not so sure I want my kid to be taught by a guy who starts bar fights.” Dean stood there barely holding back a grin.

“Oh great I’m never hearing the end of this am I? It was just that one time I usually try to avoid getting my ass kicked trust me. And hey lower your voice I don’t need you scaring the parents away.” Cas was happy with how easy their conversation seemed to flow.

“I think you’re already scaring them with the black eye and and the stitches. Don’t blame me.” Dean held his hands up and couldn't hold the grin back any longer. He let his ear to ear smile loose. Cas had forgotten he still looked pretty banged up and was wondering what impression that had left the parents with.

“Alright alright I get it. Do you want me to show you the room or are you going to move Ben into another class?”

“You know you’re pretty funny Cas, I like it.” Dean paused for a moment, “Now give me the grand tour.” As he showed Dean the room he tried to think of a way to subtly find out the answer to the question that was nagging him. 

“So where’s Ben’s mother?” Cas asked as smoothly as possible but Dean clenched his jaw when he asked. “I’m sorry that was none of my business never mind.”

“No it’s okay. She actually split three and a half years ago after a fight we had. She skipped town with the first guy she saw. She blocked me and Ben out of her life and I haven’t spoken to her since the day she left.” He said it like it was no big deal but Cas could tell he was still tense.

“Oh I’m so sorry for you that must have been hard. I know what it's like to lose someone important to you. It’s heartbreaking.” Cas tried his best to comfort him and he saw dean relax.

“Thanks man but it’s okay. It’s just me and Ben now and I kinda like it. He’s an awesome kid.” They walked around a little bit more then Dean told him he had to leave. “I wish I could stay but I actually have to take him to baseball practice.” Cas was somewhat sad Dean had to leave. He wanted to know everything about this man and never wanted to stop talking. 

“Oh okay.” That was all he could manage to get out.

Dean grabbed Ben from the matchbox car race he was having with another kid and walked over to Castiel for one final goodbye. 

“Bye Mr. Novak.” Ben looked up at him with the same damn smile as Dean.

“Bye Ben I’ll see you tomorrow buddy.” Cas looked back at Dean. “Bye Dean. I’ll take good care of him. I promise.”

“Thank you. I’ll see you around Cas. Come on Ben let's go.” As they were approaching the door Cas made a split second decision that could be the best or most humiliating choice he ever made.

“You know my niece, Claire, is seven and I think her and Ben would be good friends. They should have a play date one day.” Cas regretted saying that as soon as it left his mouth. Great he thought now he thinks I’m a dipshit who’s in love with him or something. 

“That sounds like a great idea. Let me see your phone and I'll put my number in. Text me and we can set something up.” Dean didn’t even hesitate. He actually sounded slightly relieved. Maybe even glad. Cas was practically screaming on the inside. He pulled his phone out and handed it to dean. His heart rate picked up as Dean was typing in his number. He would get to see him again and they could talk and maybe have a couple beers. Even if they didn’t date and they just became friends Cas was okay with it. All he really wanted to do was know more about Dean and now he would.

He couldn’t wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm having a lot of fun writing this and I really hope you guys are having just as much fun reading it. Thanks :)


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you like it!

After all the parents cleared out of his classroom, Cas discussed his plan for the year with Charlie. She liked his effort and said it was well thought out. Little did she know he had just barely finished it the night before. On his way out he ran into some other teachers he hadn’t talked to all summer. He talked to them for a little while then they said they were headed out to get a drink. They invited Cas but he declined. He figured it was probably a good idea to stay out of bars for a little while.

 

Cas got home at nearly 5:00. He made a stop on his way home and picked up some chinese food. Before he sat down to eat his food he had to feed his dog, Luci. Yes Luci was a boy and yes it was a girl name but he let Anna pick it out a few years ago. He was quite sassy for a dog and didn’t take anybody's shit. He was also very mischievous. He had been caught sneaking into the trash almost a dozen times and chewed up several pillows but he was still hard to not love. He grabbed his bowl and scooped a heaping pile of dry food into it. The dog came running into the kitchen as soon as he heard the food hit the metal bowl. 

 

Cas sat at his kitchen table and started eating his mediocre food. He took out his phone and stared at it. Cas tried to think of what to text Dean the entire way home. He didn’t want to sound like an idiot but he also didn’t want to sound like he was trying too hard. He didn’t understand why he was so hung up on Dean. He was positive Dean didn’t care as much about Cas as Cas did for him. He ran through a million different ways to start their conversation but finally decided on a basic one.

 

_ Cas: Hello Dean. This is Cas. _

 

He anxiously waited for a reply. He sat there eating his food and staring at his phone. It hadn’t been five minutes and he heard a ding and watched the notification pop up on his phone. Cas picked up his phone, took a deep breath, and went to his messages.

 

_ Dean: Oh hey Cas how’s it hangin? _

 

Cas felt a flutter in his stomach. He spent two minutes crafting a decent response.

 

_ Cas: Everything's good just checking to see if you still wanted to set up a playdate for Claire and Ben. _

 

_ Dean: Oh right. My shift doesn't start until 3:00 on Saturday so we can meetup and hangout until then. _

 

Cas practically jumped for joy at Dean’s proposal. This was real and he was going to have lunch with Dean Winchester. He was honestly shocked. He tried to think of reasons Dean agreed. Maybe he was just being a good dad but he figured Ben probably had lots of other friends so why agree to set up a playdate with some guy you barely know’s niece. It didn’t make sense.  _ Was Dean into him?  _ Cas quickly shook that thought away and put his leftovers in the fridge. He had lost his appetite for the cold food he abandoned in his over-analysis of the few texts him and Dean exchanged.

 

_ Cas: That sounds great. Let me check with my brother and I’ll let you know. _

 

Cas had just made plans for Claire and didn't even check with Gabe first. He loved spending time with her. They usually went out for lunch then to the park at least twice a month but it had been once a week since school let out. He knew his brother wouldn’t have a problem with it but he still had to make sure.

 

_ Cas: Hey Gabe is Claire busy on Saturday? _

 

Cas waited for a text back but then his phone started ringing. He sighed as he checked who it was but picked up anyways.

 

“Why can’t you just text me back like a normal person?” Cas made sure his annoyance was evident in his voice.

 

“Oh come on do you have to complain about everything?”

 

“When it comes to you yes. Would you mind if I took Claire out on Saturday? I set up a playdate for her and one of my students.”

 

“Is it one of her friends?” Cas knew he had to give Gabe as little information as possible so he could avoid getting harassed by him. He answered as slick as he could.

 

“No but I think her and Ben would be very good friends.” Cas hoped for the best but he knew he was in trouble when Gabe started talking in a teasing voice.

 

“Are you sure that’s the only reason Cassie because it’s a little odd to set up two kids who have never met before.” He had been caught.

 

“I’m just trying to develop new friendships for your daughter that I care very much about.”

 

“The dad is super hot isn’t he? Isn’t he Cassie?”

 

“I told you a thousand times already, do not call me Cassie.”

 

“This is why talking on the phone so much better.”

 

“Shut up can I take her or not?” Cas quickly got sick of Gabe’s twisted sense of humor.

 

“Okay fine you can take her but please don’t start making out with this guy in front of Claire. Nobody wants to see that.”

 

“What are you talking about I would never do that. I’ll pick her up around 11:00 on Saturday. Bye”

 

“Bye bye Cassie.” He didn’t bother fighting Gabe and just hung up. As soon as he got off the phone he typed out another carefully composed text to Dean.

 

_ Cas: I checked with my brother and he agreed. Where should we go? _

 

Cas immediately got a response. It was so fast it was as if Dean had been waiting by the phone.

 

_ Dean: We could eat at this Benny’s. Have you heard of it? _

 

_ Cas: Yeah I’ve been there a few times. How does 11:30 sound? _

 

_ Dean: Great. We can got to the park afterwards too. _

 

_ Cas: Sounds perfect. _

 

_ Dean: Awesome. _

 

Cas was ecstatic. He wasn’t the least bit tired but he had to go to bed if he didn’t want to be exhausted for the first day tomorrow. He got into bed and tried to get Luci to come up with him but the dog just stared at him. Cas quickly gave up and slowly fell asleep.

 

**********

 

The first week went by really slow. It always did. Cas had to show his students how things would work and what rules there would be. He had to calm down eight kids that missed their parents on Tuesday, seven on Wednesday, four on Thursday, and two on Friday. Ben Winchester happened to be one of those kids all four days. He was a really sweet kid and he looked up to his dad so much it was heartwarming. His dad was his superhero. The kids who cried because they missed their parents always had the best ones.

 

When Cas was leaving Charlie ran to catch up with him.

 

“Hey Cas me and some of the other student teachers are going out for drinks to celebrate the first week. Wanna come?” Cas was confused and it must have shown on his face because she started further clarifying. “The others said I shouldn’t invite you because you're like a boss or a higher up or something like that but you're the only person at this school I actually like.” That made Cas feel good.

 

“I don’t know about that. The last time I went to a bar it didn’t end very well.” He wanted to go but he didn’t know if he should.

 

“Please please please. Come on it will be so lame if you don’t go. Pleeeeease.” She was begging him at this point.

 

“Okay let’s go.” Cas couldn’t help but smile.

 

“Awesomesauce!”

 

“Um where exactly are we going?”

 

“The nearest bar I guess. Just follow me and you’ll be fine.” Charlie dragged Cas out of the building and to his car. He trailed her for about five minutes when they pulled up to the same bar from Saturday night. He had pretty much healed since the fight. He had told Charlie what happened earlier in the week and after the story she called him a badass and gave him a high five. He was loving their friendship.

 

When he met Charlie inside he was also introduced to four other student teachers. They were nice but formal. They definitely weren’t comfortable around Cas but he ignored it. He was determined to have fun tonight.

 

He sat down with Charlie at the bar. They each had a shot of tequila and she filled him in on the drama that was already forming between the student teachers. They laughed at the stupidity of it all. After a few minutes of that a girl came in and Charlie’s eyes lit up. She ran over to her and hugged her. She then guided her over to Cas and introduced them.

 

“Cas this is my girlfriend, Dorothy. Dorothy this is my new best friend, Castiel.” Her voice faltered a bit.

 

“You can call me Cas and it’s very nice to meet you.”

 

“It’s nice to meet you too Cas.” She was very pretty. Her brown hair was tied back in a way that framed her face perfectly. Her big blue eyes and carved out cheekbones went together beautifully. Cas turned to Charlie.

 

“If we're best friends then how come you didn’t tell me you had a girlfriend?” Charlie got kinda nervous and tense all of a sudden.

 

“Well I didn’t know how you would react. People have strong opinions about my relationship sometimes and we were getting along so well and I didn’t want to mess things up and have you hate me or something for the rest of th-” Cas cut her off.

 

“Hey it’s okay I uh actually well I’m um gay too. I get it.” She looked relieved at first then super excited. She squealed a bit and she gave him the biggest bear hug he’d ever received. It felt good to be honest with Charlie. In all his years teaching at the same school he’d never come out to any of his coworkers.

 

Charlie and Dorothy had some more shots and kept going until they were eventually wasted. Cas had stopped after two shots because he didn’t want to have a hangover tomorrow. He offered to drive the girls home but they said they'd just call a cab. He wanted to drive them so he knew they got home okay but he hesitantly left anyways.

 

Cas tried his hardest to not think about Dean and their plans for tomorrow but his mind kept wandering back to the topic. He couldn’t help it.

 

Later that night when he was laying in bed with a book he heard his phone ding. He smiled when he read whose name was on the screen.

 

_ Dean: We’re still on for tomorrow right? _

 

_ Cas: Yep Benny’s at 11:30. _

 

_ Dean: Me and Ben are super excited. See you soon. _

 

Cas’ stomach did a backflip. Dean was excited. No, Dean was  _ super _ excited. He could have been faking but that was doubtful. He could have just said Ben was excited but no, he said he was also excited. He couldn’t let him down. He had to make a good impression. He had to get Dean to like him. 

 

Cas was suddenly a hundred more times nervous for tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't worry Dean and Cas will finally have a real conversation next chapter. It should be up tomorrow or the day after so don't forget about it. Thanks guys :)


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for any typos <3

Cas had been staring at his closet for almost twenty minutes now in nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist. He had no idea what to wear. He knew it was silly to stress out about this stupid little playdate but he couldn’t help it. He finally picked out some jeans and a tshirt he got a couple weeks ago then went to the kitchen to get some coffee. He didn’t bother eating breakfast since they were going to eat a somewhat early lunch. After he drank his coffee and fed Luci he was out the door. When he pulled up to his brother’s house he saw Gabe sitting on the steps of his front porch and Claire was playing hopscotch. He was really hoping he could avoid talking to Gabe but he knew it was impossible now.

 

“Uncle Cas!” Claire greeted him with a hug and he scooped her up into his arms and she instinctively wrapped her legs and arms around him. Gabe decided to just use a sly smile as his greeting.

 

“Hey there Cassie.”

 

“For the love of god stop calling me that.” Cas just wanted to leave.He didn’t have the patience for the teasing today.

 

“Okay I won’t pick on you that much right now. I’ll save it for when you come back.” Gabe winked and Cas groaned.

 

“I’ll be back before three. Bye.” Cas turned his back and just before he got in the car, he heard Gabe’s voice one more time.

 

“Have fun on your hot date Cassie and try not to lose my kid please.” Cas shot him a quick glare but got in the car and started driving. They had to get going before they were late.

 

“Where are we going today Uncle Cas?”

 

“Well we’re going to that diner that has those really good milkshakes you love then we’re going to the park.”

 

“Yay! They have the best milkshakes ever!”

 

“There’s also going to be a new friend there. His name is Ben and he’s in my class this year.” He looked at her face on his rearview mirror and she looked a little upset. “He’s very nice and he said he was super excited to have a new friend.” She perked up a little but still wasn’t as happy as before.

 

“Oh okay.” Cas knew she had trouble making new friends. Him and Gabe talked a little about it a month or two ago. He was really worried about her. She always went off and did her own thing. She was shy and didn't want to be friends with any of the other kids. Unfortunately she got bullied for it. Kids picked on her because she minded her own business. That enraged Cas. 

Ben was also a pretty quiet kid. He was perfectly content by himself but nobody bullied him like they did Claire. He hoped maybe their similar qualities would work together and they’d be friends.

 

Claire was mostly quiet for the rest of the car ride and Cas didn’t push it. As they pulled up to Benny’s Diner Cas’ stomach twisted into tight knots. Before he got out of the car he gave himself a little pep talk.  _ Come on pull yourself together man it's just another playdate. This is about Ben and Claire, not Dean Winchester.  _ He took one deep breath and then he walked out of the car. He opened the back door to help Claire out but she was crying.

 

“Hey what’s wrong Claire why are you crying?”

 

“I don’t want him to be mean to me like everyone else is.” She managed to get that out in between sniffles.

 

“I promise you Ben is really nice but if you really don’t like him we can leave. Deal?”

 

“Okay deal.” She wiped her face and got out of the car. She held Cas’ hand as they walked up to the diner. Cas saw the same car he had been driven to the hospital in last weekend but now that he had a better look he could really appreciate it. It was a beautiful 1967 Chevy Impala and it he could already picture Dean driving it. It was the perfect car for Dean. They walked inside and saw Ben and his dad sitting side by side in a bright blue and white booth. Dean waved them over with a smile.

 

“Hello Dean. Hi Ben. This is my niece, Claire.” She scooted really close to Cas in the booth.

 

“Hey Claire. This is Ben.” Dean spoke softly. He probably noticed she was a little nervous. Ben and Claire waved at each other.  The waitress then strolled up to take their order.

 

“Hey Dean I didn’t know you were coming by today.” Cas was confused. He looked at her nametag and saw it said Jo.

 

“Yeah it’s a playdate for Ben and he was dying to get one of your burgers anyways.” The waitress took everyones orders and was about to walk away then Claire raised her voice in alarm.

 

“Wait Uncle Cas can I get a milkshake!”

 

“Me too dad!” Ben was just as enthusiastic about the ice cream as Claire was.

 

“Okay I guess add two milkshakes please.”

 

“Make it four. Thanks Jo.” Dean had just ordered Cas a  milkshake with no hesitation.

“You got it I’ll be right out with those.” She was a very pretty girl with a very pretty smile. Ben and Claire were rambling on and on about the milkshakes and then they started talking about other things. Cas was right about their personalities working together. He and Dean had both been watching them and laughing at their conversations. Then Cas decided to start his own with Dean.

 

“I’m really happy they like each other. I was getting worried about her.” Dean looked up at him with those gorgeous green eyes.

 

“Yeah I was starting to worry about Ben too. I’ve been asking him if he had any friends and he says no every time I ask. Is he doing okay in class?”

 

“Yeah he’s a great student but he needs a little work on his social skills. He doesn’t really want to interact with the other kids but he seems to enjoy his alone time. That’s not always a bad thing but he needs to learn how to make friends for the future.” Dean looked like he was taking mental notes of what Cas was saying then he looked back down at the kids.

 

“I guess he knows how to make friends he just hadn’t met the right person. Huh.” Dean kinda chuckled to himself as if he told a joke.

 

“This is great. Claire gets bullied at school because she doesn’t want to talk to the other kids. She needs a friend.”

 

“Damn they just pick on her because she’s quiet?” Cas nodded. “That’s messed up.”

 

“Really messed up.” they fell into a silence as they watched the kids talking. That’s when their food came. Cas was starving because he skipped breakfast.

 

“So how long have you been a teacher?” Dean said between bites.

 

“About six years now.” This was the best burger Cas had had in a long time.

 

“Oh cool you gotta have tons of crazy stories about your kids.” 

 

“Yeah I have had some pretty strange situations but you probably have lots more stories you’re a doctor right?”

 

“Yeah I’m a surgical intern and I have seen some crazy stuff.” Dean continued to tell a story about a weird case he had gotten but Castiel couldn’t focus on a word he was saying. He was too busy looking at the little sparkle that appeared in Dean's eye and Cas could tell he was excited and passionate about his work. It took him a second to realize Dean had stopped talking and was waiting for a response from Cas. Castiel was now staring at Dean.

 

“Wow that’s incredible. Sounds like the sucky hours are worth it.” Cas stuttered a little bit and could feel his face growing red and hot. He tried to hide his blush forming from embarrassment but he couldn’t help it. Dean just gave a soft smile and shook his head. 

 

“The hours are pretty bad but I love it there. It’s just hard to not see Ben when I want to sometimes.” Ben looked up at Dean and Dean ruffled his hair up and gave him a noogie. Ben then fixed his hair and went back to talking to Claire. Castiel hasn't’ heard her laughing that hard in ages.

 

“I bet.” They finished and paid for their food a few minutes later and then walked out together.

 

“This is a pretty cool car.” Cas slid his hand along the hood as he said it, really looking at the car.

 

“Thanks! This is Baby and she is the most beautiful car I know. I love this car.” Dean spoke with so much excitement it made Cas’ heart leap inside his chest because it was so adorable.

 

“Well she is very pretty and it’s good to see she's appreciated.”

 

“Other than the blood I had to clean off from when I rescued you I take pretty good care of her.” When Dean said that he looked so proud of his little joke.

 

“Oh please you did not rescue me. Rescuing me would have been getting the guy off me.”

 

“Just admit it man, I’m awesome.” Dean said it so matter of factly. 

 

“Whatever.” Before Dean could respond his phone started ringing. Dean looked down at his phone to see who was calling.

 

“Hey I’m sorry it’s my brother do you mind if I take this real quick?”

 

“No of course not.” He walked a few feet away and answered his phone. Cas couldn’t resist the urge to eavesdrop.

 

“Sam what do you need I’m kinda in the middle of something.” He paused, waiting for a response. “Are you kidding me? Great timing Sammy. Yeah, yeah fine I’ll get her but you owe me big time got it?” He then hung up and came back over looking extremely annoyed.

 

“I  _ really _ hate to do this but I have to go. My brother is a dumbass and he’s in the emergency room and I need to go pick up his daughter. I’m really sorry Cas.” 

 

Damn it.

 

“No it’s okay I totally understand don’t worry about it. Is he okay?” Cas tried to not let his disappointment show in his voice.

 

“He will be. He was outside playing soccer with his kid and he tripped and broke his arm. He said he’d be in there for a couple hours and didn’t want Anna to be there so I gotta pick her up.”

 

“Oh man I get it go ahead we can all go to the park another time.”

 

“Yes! We will do that. Me and Ben had a really great time today and I’m so happy they got along.”

 

“Me too. I’ll see you later Dean. Goodbye.”

 

“Bye cas.” Ben and Claire said their goodbyes and then they all parted their separate ways. When Cas and Claire got in the car Claire was the one to interrupt Cas watching Dean pull out of the parking lot.

 

“I really liked Ben!”

 

“That’s great sweetheart I’m really glad.”

 

“But does this mean we can’t go to the park?” Cas just wants to go home but he can’t break his promise.

 

“We can go to the park but Ben can’t come.”

 

“Okie dokie Uncle Cas.” 

 

Claire was silent for the whole 15 minute car ride to the park but as soon as they got there she practically bursted out of the car. She made a beeline for the old swingset and Cas parked himself on a bench close enough to her so he could keep an eye on her. 

 

He spent the rest of the afternoon thinking about lunch. He couldn’t get dean out of his head. He doesn’t understand why he can’t keep his mind off this guy who he’s barely had any interaction with. It doesn’t make sense but Castiel isn’t fighting it too hard right now. He’s allowing himself to be happy for a little while. He’s letting the memory of the sparkle in Dean’s eye make him feel better.

 

He knows those eyes could fix everything broken about himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this was supposed to be posted over a week ago and I'm really sorry but I've been super busy. I hope this chapter makes up for it. Please comment your thoughts and thank you guys so much :)


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